Working With Me

Hi, I’m Wilken. I’m a senior engineering manager. I help engineers and managers grow, work through problems, and understand how their work fits into the bigger picture.

I’ll often ask questions to help you think through a challenge. If you want my advice, ask directly. I’m happy to share it.

Background

I’m an engineer by trade, with a passion for coaching, mentoring, and community building. You can find my work history on LinkedIn.

My Role

I want you to have the context, support, and room to make decisions about your work. I also want us to understand how that work helps our customers and the company. When something isn’t working, let’s talk about why and what we can change.

My Schedule

I keep my calendar up to date. I try to reserve mornings for focused work and afternoons for meetings and collaboration, Eastern Time. Reach out when you need me, even if we don’t have a meeting scheduled.

How to Communicate with Me

  • Slack: Best for everyday questions. I snooze notifications outside working hours, so message whenever it’s convenient for you. I’ll respond when I’m back.
  • In person or video: Best for complicated conversations that need our full attention.
  • Email: Useful for information we’ll want to refer back to.

If I haven’t replied, I may be focused on something, thinking through my response, or offline. Let me know if it’s urgent.

1-on-1s

This time is for your career goals, challenges, and feedback for me.

  • With new hires, I start weekly and usually move to every other week as we settle into working together.
  • You don’t need to wait for a 1-on-1 to bring something up.

Feedback

I prefer giving feedback in person or over video, though I may share quick feedback over Slack.

For feedback about me, I appreciate a private, direct conversation. A 1-on-1 works well, but Slack is fine if it can’t wait.

What I Value

  • Honest communication and clear direction
  • Time to focus
  • Curiosity and learning
  • Helping each other

Building Software

  • Understand what users need. Our own experience won’t always match theirs.
  • Make it easy for people to do what they came to do.
  • Automate where it helps. A practical solution that handles 60–70% of a problem can still be useful.
  • Improve the code and processes we work with as we learn.
  • Share what you know and take responsibility for what you build.

Working Together

  • Keep people informed. Ask: “What do I know? Who needs to know? Have I told them?”
  • Write down decisions and share the context behind them.
  • Let people know when you’re stepping away or unavailable.
  • Stay curious and ask questions before drawing conclusions.
  • Help peers learn, and support them when they take on unfamiliar work.
  • Ask for help early when you’re blocked.
  • Make time to learn, and take care of yourself.
  • Talk with me about where you want your career to go.